I'm really not a superstar

Chapter 105

After the draft, the Rockets continued to play tricks.

They started by signing free agent Brent Barry.

This "white man can fly" veteran also came to Houston to play after his brother Joan Barry.

For this signing, the outside world's evaluation is quite high.

Barry's performance in the Spurs shows that although he can't fly, he has excellent game reading ability and rhythm control ability.

He can play from point guard to small forward, and the "one-of-a-kind" attribute is the most scarce in the Rockets.

In addition, he also has a precise three-pointer.

But the most important thing is that he has the experience of winning the championship and the heart of a champion.

Just when the outside world was admiring the Rockets' signing, unexpectedly, a bigger surprise was yet to come.

On the third day after the draft, a shocking deal involving three teams broke out in the NBA!
The Rockets sent Bobby Johnson, Luther Hyde, Stephen Francis, the right to sign this year's No. 25 rookie Danny Green, two first-round picks in 2009 and 2011, plus $300 million.

From the New York Knicks in exchange for the signing rights of No. 6 rookie Joey Dorsey and French center Frederick Weiss; from the Sacramento Kings in exchange for Artest and Kenny Thomas.

For this big deal involving three teams and 12 people, the outside world has mixed reviews.

Supporters say Rockets manager Mosaic successfully completed a "robbery"!
He exchanged a bunch of old, small and small fringe players, draft picks, cash and other auxiliary means in exchange for a few immediate combat power in his prime.

Especially with the arrival of Artest, he is regarded as the third giant besides Yao Mai!
And No. [-] rookie Joey Dorsey has also been placed with certain hopes by fans and the media.Of course, under the cover of "The Beast" Artest's halo, the stars of the No. [-] show will be much dimmed.

In short, supporters say that after this deal, the Rockets' paper strength has surpassed the "Old Texas Neighbors" Spurs and Mavericks, and has become one of the strongest teams in the West and even in the league.

Relive the championship, just around the corner!
But there is no shortage of critics of the deal.

They think the Rockets are obviously betting on the present with the future.

The contracts of Bobby Jackson and Francis are about to expire, and there will be a lot of salary space in the future. Hyde, as a rookie who has been training hard in the past few years, has already demonstrated certain abilities.

The two first-round picks are even more related to the future of the Rockets.

It can be said that this transaction of the Rockets belongs to a stud!
The Rockets want to take advantage of Yao Mai's ability to play, and seize the time to fight one last time.

But if it fails, it is likely that the next few seasons will not be able to breathe a sigh of relief. Not only will it not be able to select available rookies, it may even be crushed to death by a garbage contract like Kenny Thomas.

In this regard, the "Houston Chronicle" senior columnist Fran Bilimberley commented most objectively:
"How to evaluate this three-way deal? To be honest, it's hard to say. But at least three teams got what they wanted.

The New Yorkers didn't seem to get much, but considering the mess left by previous head coach Isaiah Thomas, you can understand the original intention of their decision.

Michael D'Antoni faced a lineup that simply didn't work together and didn't have any structure.

If you were someone else, you would definitely be helpless, but D'Antoni's "don't ask, just vote" tactical strategy may bring a way out for this team.

Therefore, their choice is not difficult to understand. Danny Green's movement speed and offensive ability are exactly what D'Antoni is looking for. At the same time, Asab Rahim, who was traded from the Kings, is likely to retire this season. Free up salary space, and draft picks can bring them room to play in the future.

The Kings actually didn't have many options. Artest was in constant trouble in Sacramento, and the wife beating case once again made people associate him with violence, brutality, and out of control. He and coach Musselman didn't call at all.Facing Ron who insisted on leaving, the best choice for the Kings was to ask for more bargaining chips.

And now they are able to send away Kenny Thomas' junk contract, which is very fortunate.

Unlike the previous two teams, what the Rockets need is immediate combat power.Last season they created a 22-game winning streak, but the fact that Yao Ming was injured and the team still failed to break through the first round of the playoffs shows that they urgently need a stable third scoring point to help Yao and Mai carry this team together. team!
And Artest is undoubtedly the most correct choice. He has won DPOY, and he also performed well on the offensive end, averaging 20.5 points per game last season!
More importantly, Artest has the toughness and ferocity that Yao Mai lacks!

In terms of ball skills, Yao Mai is the ceiling of technical ability in their respective positions, but their personalities are somewhat low-key and introverted. It is hard to imagine that under the leadership of two good men, the Rockets can play like the "Detroit bad boys" Jagged Basketball.

The lack of domineering is also an important constraint factor for the team's inability to break through the curse of the first round of the playoffs.

Now, the arrival of Ron, the bulldog, has made up for the Rockets' shortcoming of temperament, and it is more likely to stimulate the team's chemical reaction.

In addition, the arrival of Joey Dorsey is also worthy of our attention, the inside main force of the newly promoted NCAA champion team, is an interesting guy.As far as I know, the Rockets have been investigating him for a long time, and the strong interest in him is also a major incentive for the Rockets to actively promote this deal.

Of course, trading is risky.

For the Knicks and the Kings, although a large number of redundant contracts have been cleared, the improvement of the team's immediate combat power is limited, and even discounted to some extent. Their prospects this season are still not optimistic, but at least There is hope for their future.

The Rockets are just the opposite. They have strengthened their immediate combat capabilities, and it can even be said that they barely made up the "Big Three" in Houston, but the actual effect, just like Tracy's injury, no one knows what will happen.

As for Joey Dorsey, he might be a decent NBA player in two or three seasons, but for now, I'm cautious about how helpful he can be.

However, no matter how the team trades, it is Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady who ultimately determine how far the team can go.

......"

There was a lot of discussion from the outside world, but no one understood the value of this deal better than Joey Dorsey. After all, he was the party involved, and he was also a time traveler.

The general manager of the Rockets, Mosaic, has roughly the same operational thinking as in his previous life, except that he merged several future deals into one big three-party deal.

In the previous life, after several transactions, the Rockets got Artest and finally broke the curse of the first round of the playoffs, but they also lost room for future maneuvers, especially Yao Ming's serious injury and McGrady and the team. After the flop, the Rockets fell into a slump, and it was not until a few years later that the bearded brother Deng came to gradually breathe a sigh of relief.

But now, the Rockets pay more. Not only did they pay for the draft picks, they lost Luther Hyde, and they also took Kenny Thomas' garbage contract. With an annual salary of more than 800 million US dollars, he can only get 1.4 points and 2.7 rebounds.

The flapping of my own tiny butterfly wings has caused some changes in history.

As for whether to develop in a better direction or fall into a darker abyss, I am afraid that only time can give the answer.

At the same time, in a luxury villa in the suburbs of Houston, a farewell is taking place.

The first floor of the villa was busy, and Steve Francis' family members were busy packing their bags. They all knew that after leaving this time, Steve would never return to Houston to play.

The study room on the second floor is in stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of the first floor.

There were only two people in the room, one tall and one short sitting on the sofa.

The short one is Steve Francis, the owner of the house, and the tall one is Yao Ming, the star of the Rockets.

"Yao, thank you for coming to see me off. I know you are recovering from your injuries for the Olympics. I didn't want to disturb you, but..."

In terms of personality, he became more polite to the bold Francis.

"Boss, what are you talking about! Don't say I'm still in Houston, even if I'm in China, I'll fly back to see you off!"

Dayao, who has always been low-key and calm, was a little excited.

"Yao, I read you right! Although you are a superstar now, you have not changed, you are still my good brother!"

"Boss, one day the boss and always the boss, I wouldn't be in Houston without you."

"Yeah, I still remember that the lottery was very lucky. We seem to have only 8% chance of winning the lottery. Maybe, this is fate!"

"I really have to thank you, not only because you brought me to Houston, but also because you taught me what the NBA is and what American basketball is!"

"That's because you learned quickly by yourself. At that time, you followed me and the old cat Mobley every day. To be honest, it feels really good to have a champion as a follower!"

"Haha, I have to thank you for not bullying me, a rookie!"

"No? How do I remember asking you to shine my shoes once!"

"Yes, I scored 20 points that time! You only scored less than 10 points. You were so angry at that time, haha!"

"Haha" both of them laughed together.

"However, you don't listen to me everything."

"Have it?"

"Yes, I remember very clearly. On the first day you came, I asked you to go to a nightclub. You said you were going to call your girlfriend. I said you should be careful. Women are all for your money. In the end, you were not happy. , saying that you Americans don’t understand love!”

"Haha, I remembered. Actually, I was terrified that day. When I first came to the United States, nightclubs and other capitalist dross, I was scared when I thought about it! However, I was right, my girlfriend Ye Li is now my wife Already!"

"Yes, Yao, I gradually realized that you understand life much better than I do!" Francis said in a sad tone.

Yao Ming changed the topic, "By the way, there was also the time you helped me get ahead, that is, in the game against the Suns, Stoudemire yelled at me after dunking, but you knocked him aside hard. He jumped and shouted: This is my territory, Yao is my brother!

From then on, I have identified you as my big brother! "

"Hehe, Amare is angry but he is only the No. 9 pick, and you are the No. The first time you beat Phoenix, didn't you teach him to be a man!"

"Boss, to be honest, I feel at ease with you by my side."

"Yao, don't talk about it. Although the boss is no longer good on the court, if anyone dares to trouble you, I will definitely let him go around!"

"Thank you, Boss!" Dayao's eyes were a little moist.

"Yao, have a drink with me!" Francis said suddenly.

"Okay" Yao Ming usually doesn't drink alcohol, especially when he is recovering from an injury, he pays more attention to his diet, but this time he agreed without hesitation.

Francis took out a bottle of rare baijiu from the wine cabinet, and it turned out to be Moutai!

"Yao, do you remember this bottle of wine?"

"This is what I gave you when we went to China. You haven't finished drinking yet?"

"Your Chinese wine is too strong, and I'm not used to drinking it, so this bottle has been kept in my collection. Now, it's time to drink it up!"

As he spoke, he poured half a glass for himself and Dayao.

Yao Ming raised his wine glass, "For the eternal No. 3!"

Francis smiled and clinked glasses with Yao Ming, and the two drank it down in one gulp.

Francis poured the wine again, and this time he raised his glass, "For the great number 11!"

The two drank again.

Fill up the third glass of wine.

This time the two said in unison, "For the Rockets!"

After drinking three glasses, Francis didn't touch the bottle again. Yao Ming wanted to continue pouring wine, but was stopped by the boss.

"Yao, it's almost done, your Chinese baijiu is too strong, I can't drink it anymore."

Yao Ming's heart warmed, he knew that the boss took care of him again.He hangs out in bars and nightclubs every day, so how could he not be able to drink, but he knows that he can't drink enough, and he is still recovering from his injuries, so he found an excuse to stop drinking.

Before Yao Ming left, Francis suddenly stretched out his hand and said with a smile: "Yao, do it again!"

Yao Ming, who was already slightly drunk, smiled. This was the tacit understanding between the boss and himself during his rookie season.

Before the game, Frederick held out one hand and asked rookie Yao Ming to rub his two big hands vigorously until it became hot, and then rubbed the other hand, implying to maintain the fiery feeling.

Now the two of them repeat this action again, but they are filled with emotion in their hearts.

The more I rub my hands, the hotter I feel, and the hotter my heart becomes.

The eye sockets of both of them were reddish, they didn't know whether it was the wine or the strong brotherhood in their hearts that made them intoxicated.

In the end, the two hugged each other tightly and cherished each other.

From then on, the rivers and lakes are far away, don't ask about the return date.

PS: These transactions did not happen at the same time in reality. For example, the transaction of Francis actually happened at Christmas, and they are put together here for the development of the story.

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(End of this chapter)